nLab algebraic model for modal logics

Algebras for modal logics

Context

(0,1)(0,1)-Category theory

Type theory

natural deduction metalanguage, practical foundations

  1. type formation rule
  2. term introduction rule
  3. term elimination rule
  4. computation rule

type theory (dependent, intensional, observational type theory, homotopy type theory)

syntax object language

computational trinitarianism =
propositions as types +programs as proofs +relation type theory/category theory

logicset theory (internal logic of)category theorytype theory
propositionsetobjecttype
predicatefamily of setsdisplay morphismdependent type
proofelementgeneralized elementterm/program
cut rulecomposition of classifying morphisms / pullback of display mapssubstitution
introduction rule for implicationcounit for hom-tensor adjunctionlambda
elimination rule for implicationunit for hom-tensor adjunctionapplication
cut elimination for implicationone of the zigzag identities for hom-tensor adjunctionbeta reduction
identity elimination for implicationthe other zigzag identity for hom-tensor adjunctioneta conversion
truesingletonterminal object/(-2)-truncated objecth-level 0-type/unit type
falseempty setinitial objectempty type
proposition, truth valuesubsingletonsubterminal object/(-1)-truncated objecth-proposition, mere proposition
logical conjunctioncartesian productproductproduct type
disjunctiondisjoint union (support of)coproduct ((-1)-truncation of)sum type (bracket type of)
implicationfunction set (into subsingleton)internal hom (into subterminal object)function type (into h-proposition)
negationfunction set into empty setinternal hom into initial objectfunction type into empty type
universal quantificationindexed cartesian product (of family of subsingletons)dependent product (of family of subterminal objects)dependent product type (of family of h-propositions)
existential quantificationindexed disjoint union (support of)dependent sum ((-1)-truncation of)dependent sum type (bracket type of)
logical equivalencebijection setobject of isomorphismsequivalence type
support setsupport object/(-1)-truncationpropositional truncation/bracket type
n-image of morphism into terminal object/n-truncationn-truncation modality
equalitydiagonal function/diagonal subset/diagonal relationpath space objectidentity type/path type
completely presented setsetdiscrete object/0-truncated objecth-level 2-type/set/h-set
setset with equivalence relationinternal 0-groupoidBishop set/setoid with its pseudo-equivalence relation an actual equivalence relation
equivalence class/quotient setquotientquotient type
inductioncolimitinductive type, W-type, M-type
higher inductionhigher colimithigher inductive type
-0-truncated higher colimitquotient inductive type
coinductionlimitcoinductive type
presettype without identity types
set of truth valuessubobject classifiertype of propositions
domain of discourseuniverseobject classifiertype universe
modalityclosure operator, (idempotent) monadmodal type theory, monad (in computer science)
linear logic(symmetric, closed) monoidal categorylinear type theory/quantum computation
proof netstring diagramquantum circuit
(absence of) contraction rule(absence of) diagonalno-cloning theorem
synthetic mathematicsdomain specific embedded programming language

homotopy levels

semantics

Algebras for modal logics

Idea

Classical propositional calculus has an algebraic model, namely a Boolean algebra. With a bit of imagination, one can give it a combinatorial model in the line of Kripke semantics. As this ordinary propositional logic has no modal operators, then the corresponding frames have no relations, so are just sets. If WW is such a set, (of worlds), a valuation V:Prop2 WV: Prop \to 2^W just assigns to each pPropp \in Prop and wWw\in W a truth value, \top or \bot, (true or false). We know however that there is a Boolean algebra structure around in that power set 2 W2^W and the semantics extends the assignment given by VV to a map of algebras, from the term algebra based on the basic propositional language to the Boolean algebra of subsets of WW. That is just to say that it builds up that extension of VV bit-by-bit on the terms. This gives an algebraic interpretation or representation of the terms of the logic in terms of the algebra of subsets of WW, in other words an algebraic semantics.

Modal logics also have an algebraic semantics based on a Boolean algebra, but with additional operators that model the modal operators. This is as well as the geometric semantics using frames.

Boolean algebras with operators (BAOs)

Boolean algebras

We will, here, consider a Boolean algebra, 𝔹\mathbb{B }, as an algebra, and in the notation,

𝔹=(B,+,,¯,0,1)\mathbb{B} = (B, +, \cdot, \overline{},0,1)

so, for example, for a set SS, the power set Boolean algebra will be

(S)=(𝒫(S),,,,,S),\mathbb{P}(S) = (\mathcal{P}(S), \cup, \cap,-,\emptyset, S),

where A-A is shorthand for the complement, SAS- A, of AA.

Operators

The operators that we need to add into the Boolean algebras do not always preserve all the structure:

Definition

A function, m:BBm : B\to B is called an operator on the Boolean algebra, 𝔹\mathbb{B}, if it is additive

m(x+y)=mx+my.m(x+y) = m x + m y.

The operator, mm, is called normal if m(0)=0m(0)=0.

Any operator, mm, in this sense has a dual l:BBl : B\to B given by

l(x)=(m(x )) .l(x) = (m(x^-))^-.

As mm is additive, ll is multiplicative

l(xy)=l(x)l(y),l(x\cdot y) = l(x)\cdot l(y),

and has l(1)=1l(1) = 1 if mm is normal.

Remark

One of the myriad notations used for the generic modal operators \lozenge and \Box, are MM and LL, whence MM is ‘possibility, and LL is ‘necessity“, and these gave the names to the operators above.

Definition

A Boolean algebra with operators, or BAO, of type nn consists of a Boolean algebra 𝔹\mathbb{B}, and a set, m im_i, i=1,,ni = 1,\ldots, n of operators on BB.

BAOs are sometimes called modal algebras, especially in the case that n=1n = 1. The term polymodal algebra is then used for the general case.

There is no need in the definition of BAOs to restrict to finitely many operators nor to have all the operators being unary. The general theory is discussed in the Survey by Goldblatt (see the references).

Examples

Example

BAOs from frames.

Let 𝔉=(W,R)\mathfrak{F} = (W ,R) be a frame. We define on the power set Boolean algebra, (W)\mathbb{P}(W), the operator mm by, if TWT\subseteq W,

m(T)={wW:tT,Rwt}m(T) = \{w \in W : \exists t\in T, R w t \}

It perhaps pays to interpret this in the case where RR is a preorder and when it is an equivalence relation. In the first case, this will be the set of states less than or equal to something in TT, in the second it is the union of all equivalence classes that contain an element of TT.

Lemma

The function mm is a normal operator.

The proof is a simple manipulation of the definitions.

The dual operator ll is given by l(T)={wWtT¬Rwt}l(T) = \{w\in W\mid \forall t\in T \neg R w t\}. (Again look at this for the preorder and equivalence frame cases.)

It is easy to extend this example to 𝔉=(W,R 1,,R n)\mathfrak{F} = (W ,R_1,\ldots, R_n) with the result being a BAO of type nn.

Example

The Lindenbaum-Tarski algebra of a modal logic.

Suppose Λ ω(n)\Lambda \subseteq \mathcal{L}_\omega(n) is a normal modal logic, then its Lindenbaum-Tarski algebra has a natural BAO structure, for which see the above page.

Varieties of modal and polymodal algebras

The following is a list of some of the main equationally defined classes of (poly)modal algebras. (For convenience each has been given a separate entry.)

References

General books on modal logics that include information on algebraic models include:

  • Patrick Blackburn, M. de Rijke and Y. Venema, Modal Logic, Cambridge Tracts in Theoretical Computer Science, vol. 53, 2001.

  • Marcus Kracht, Tools and Techniques in Modal Logic, Studies in Logic and the Foundation of Mathematics, 142, Elsevier, 1999.

There is an excellent short survey article (versions of which are available on the web):

  • Robert Goldblatt, Algebraic Polymodal Logic: A Survey, the Logic Journal of the

    IGPL, 8, (2000) pages 393–450, Special Issue on Algebraic Logic, edited by Istvan Nemeti and Ildiko Sain.

Discussion of modal logic in terms of coalgebra and terminal coalgebra of an endofunctor is in

  • Corina Cirstea, Alexander Kurz, Dirk Pattinson, Lutz Schröder and Yde Venema, Modal logics are coalgebraic (pdf)

Last revised on July 1, 2022 at 10:43:37. See the history of this page for a list of all contributions to it.